


My Anchor

by Phisobi



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Angst with a Happy Ending, Curses, First Meetings, LOOK I GAVE RAY A LAST NAME its a miracle, M/M, Original Character(s), Shapeshifter, Short Story, i just like writing garbage leave me alone lmfaoo, monster shifter, set in modern times but like with weird creatures and curses. idk its a weird au, sort of inspired by my hometown and some legends around it :3€, takes place in a super small town rural mountain area
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:47:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26164363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phisobi/pseuds/Phisobi
Summary: Based off of this post I made on Tumblr: "okay but imagine a monster shifter who loses themselves in the transformation (esp the more they fight it) and quite literally just turns into a giant beast without conscience for the duration of the shift. when they exhaust themselves or time runs out and they revert back into a human, they remember nothing other than blacking out.cue a beast tamer or monster hunter or something of the likes who's tasked with putting a stop to the rampaging creature. but after they see its writhing form shift back into an unconscious person, they realize they may have more on their hands than they originally thought.
Relationships: Original Male Character/Original Male Character, platonicly - Relationship
Comments: 1
Kudos: 16





	1. The Curse

**Author's Note:**

> idk what this really is but its a lot shorter than most of my other works! but i hope it still carries an impact! i actually have a cute little plot for this, too. i think. anyway enjoy, if you want lol.

"No, no, **_no_**. It can't be happening _now._ Why is it happening _now_?!"

Ray's feet carried him across the small clearing towards the trees, faster than he's ever run before. Not an animal was in sight near his presence, the creatures of this forest knowing all too well what would happen if they stuck around. Branches whipped past as he pushed forward, some scraping his body on the way by, but he didn't care. They'd be gone by tomorrow anyway. He just had to make it far away.

The shift only happens once every month.. Or, at least, it was supposed to. But as of late something has been making it act up more frequently, his body growing more and more restless in his tiny human form as time went on. It was happening almost once a week at this point, with little else he could do other than distance himself from the little town a few miles south whenever it happened. 

More than once before he's woken up with random stuff stuck in his teeth, or surrounded by items that definitely weren't his, or, on rare occasions, covered in blood. It seemed that whenever the beast took control it liked to try and find the village, and took whatever it damn well pleased if it did.

Ray always felt a huge rush of guilt afterwards, wondering if he should try and return the stuff, but he never did. He didn't dare out himself to the townspeople as the big lumbering beast that was stealing their belongings and tore through anything in its wake. That was a surefire way to get a mob sent after him. He doubted that they'd be able to find his little hidden cave in the side of the mountain, but still he preferred as little human contact as possible. If they _did_ find him, they'd probably try to kill him on the spot.

_They would never understand._

A deep, aching pain coursed through his legs and back as he pushed on into the trees, getting as far away from civilization as he could manage on two feet. If he had known that it would be happening today he would've put extra distance between him and the town and given himself some space for the transformation, but sadly the curse wasn't very good at giving a heads up. 

Fortunately though, it had some sort of homing feature. No matter where he ran to, how far he got, or how hidden he made himself, he always seemed to wake back up in his den of blankets in the mountain cave with no recollection of how he got back there. 

His memory, for the most part, failed him entirely for the duration of the shift. He couldn't register anything he saw or heard, had no authority over his mind or body. It was like something else was in control, and he _hated_ it. More often than not he fought each and every shift, not wanting to succumb to the monster that dwelled inside of him.

But that only made things worse. The more he repressed the need to change forms, the worse the actual transformation was when it came time; It always felt weirder, hurt more, or lasted longer. The only speck of light in his entire situation was knowing that he'd wake up safe again in the mountain the next morning, like nothing had ever happened. 

And he clung to that little hope as his vision began to swim and darken on the sides. He was thrown forward onto his hands and knees from the momentum, his back arching to the sky as his bones and muscles contorted into a different form. One much larger than a human.

A pained, low growl escaped from him as he crumpled into the dirt below, letting the transformation take its place.

He blacked out on the forest ground, praying to whatever god above that he'd made it far enough from the village this time.


	2. The Hunter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ive changed some stuff in this chapter and the last one! sorry lol

The beast was looking for something. It _had_ to be. Why else would it be returning here every fortnight, rummaging through the people's supplies, with its nose running wild like a dog's. When it came around everybody closed up shops, shut their doors, locked their windows. The whole town would go on standby, watching in fearful silence as the massive four-legged form traversed through the streets with a menace in its eyes. It had never attacked someone, not yet, but everybody knew it was just a matter of time before someone fell victim to the large predator.

And so out of fear of losing their own people the town had employed the services of an experienced monster hunter by the name of Troy, tasking him with putting a stop to the rampaging beast. The town wasn't safe with that thing on the loose.

So Troy immediately got to work. 

The hunter went around to every person in town, asking if they had any information on the beast. But no one, not young or old, had ever fully laid eyes on it. Except one person.

"It was huuuge," the man spouted, seemingly glad that someone seemed to believe or at least be interested in his ramblings. "It had four legs and huge teeth and glowing eyes and spikes everywhere!" 

Troy only nodded in response, unsure how much of the man's words he believed. He'd seen some pretty crazy looking creatures before, so it wasn't entirely improbable that everything he said was true, but the man _did_ seem a little…. _unstable_ to put things lightly. Even the rest of the town didn't seem to believe it much, arguing that anybody close enough to see it that well in the dark would have just gotten eaten.

Much to the hunter's dismay nobody else had been helpful in detailing the beast so he moved on to studying its patterns next, trying to figure out where it was coming from, why it was choosing here of all places, or if it frequented any certain buildings more than others. But after watching it closely on its third trip to the town in three weeks, all it seemed to do was look around, head kept low to the ground, sniffing lightly. Occasionally it would crush a mailbox or take home random miscellaneous items from people's front lawns, but it never did any real damage, unlike most of the beasts he's been contracted to kill.

So the question remained. _What_ _was it looking for?_

The question stumped him for the better part of the next week, unable to give the townsfolk an answer. They were nervous, that much was obvious, and many wondered why he hadn't gotten rid of the beast yet. But he had a plan. If he couldn't figure out what it was doing in the town, then he'd just have to follow it _out_ of town. It always disappeared into the northern woods, and if it was returning here so often then it must be living nearby. If there was a path it traveled frequently, he could set some traps to bring it down and decide what to do from there. All he had to do was wait.

And wait he did, for another three days until the creature returned. The scene played out as usual, with the people hiding for their lives and the beast strolling through indifferently, on the hunt for.. _something_. It had even passed right by the sheep pens on the way towards the houses, so Troy knew it wasn't just looking for food.

He waited in the shadows as the giant creature passed by, stalking it throughout the entire town. Upon hiring him the people had probably expected some sort of grand battle between him and it, with him coming out on top victorious as ever holding it's severed head in hand. But this was a slow and meticulous process and not something he could just get done with a sword, despite the tales of the 'ferocious monster hunters.' He was still human after all, and likely wouldn't survive if he simply angered the giant beast without a plan.

After about an hour the creature seemed to finish up its fruitless search, sulking back into the line of the dense woods on the northern side of town. In the moonlight from where he followed a good distance back to remain out of it's scent range, Troy could see a few identifiable features. Namely the two hind legs and the large spiked tail that swished behind it. So the strange man had been right, after all.

Thrilled with his discovery and his plan actually working, Troy continued to follow the heavy footsteps ahead of him, careful to stay out of sight. The beast trudged on deeper into the woods, and the hunter followed suit.

For a lot longer than he was expecting, though. It seemed that they were on a well-worn path, with how the tree branches and underbrush parted to the sides just enough for the creature to fit through. But the path didn't seem to end anywhere in sight.

As his fears grew so did his curiosity, and as usual the latter trumped the former, so he only continued to follow.

Miles stretched out between them and the town, and he couldn't help but feverishly wonder where the beast was headed. It seemed to have slow, tired movements, but stayed at the same pace for the entire distance. Only when they came to a fork in the road did they change directions, now heading northwest.

Idly Troy wondered if the beast knew it was being followed and was trying to get him lost, but he quickly pushed that thought aside. The thing was smart, yeah, but it definitely didn't have the mental capacity for thinking like _that_. Steeling his nerves, he continued on despite his better judgement. It was a job to do, after all.

But after a while, his persistence and patience had finally paid off. The beast hugged the side of the cliff face on the mountain before it made an abrupt right turn into a crevasse in the stone, barely big enough for it to fit through. 

Troy's eyes widened as he realized that this is where it must be returning to every time it ventured to the village. _Was this just its stash? Or was it its home? Were there more of it inside? What if this one was just a baby?_ The hunter cursed himself under his breath for his unprofessionalism, and ill-preparedness for what lies ahead of him.

The smart thing to do would be to not go in there, visibly mark the area, warn the locals, set up traps along the path, and capture it when it next came out. But something in him, something that was either incredibly stupid or incredibly brave, wanted to explore. He'd gone the entire distance so far without being detected, so he told himself he could probably go a little farther.

Unsure if he was making the biggest score or the biggest mistake of his life, he ventured on.


	3. The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For anyone wondering, this is Ray's design:
> 
> https://bottlesandbuttons.tumblr.com/post/627989685553299456
> 
> huge thank you to the artist for all their help and inspiration ♡

It was stupidly dangerous to willingly walk himself into the den of a large predator of unknown origin, but he couldn't help it. The more he could learn about this contract, the better chance he'd have at completing it.

With a shaky breath he pushed aside his fear, stepping into the crevasse a few minutes after the beast had vanished. There was a short hall at the entrance, but after a couple of steps it opened up to a gigantic cave, big enough to fit at least three of what he was following. He swallowed, making sure to stay within fleeing distance if necessary, and strained his eyes to see in the much darker environment.

The sun had long since set, but there was still a minuscule amount of light in the cave. Along the ceiling spanned large cracks the size of the entrance he just walked through, letting thick vines dangle down. Moonlight poured through the openings, and he followed the soft glowing beams of light from the top of the cave to the cold hard floor, where they shone down directly onto a giant… _pile_? 

Curiously Troy crept two steps closer, but when the pile _shifted_ he stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes caught sight of and immediately recognized the dark massive form, seemingly asleep near the center of the cave. It's entire body moved up and down with each labored breath, sending a constant rush of wind Troy's way. 

Just faintly, he noticed the fabric materials and little objects all around it; The hunter couldn't make much out in the dim light, but he figured they were the belongings of the townsfolk. He only had a moment to think of _what_ in the world the creature wanted with all of their junk, before a long low whine echoed through the round stone walls of the massive cave.

His attention whipped back to the beast, who seemed to be… in pain? It hadn't eaten anything from the town, so maybe it was starving? From what Troy could tell, the thing had no external injuries.

Stupidly, he silently crept forward once more. He wanted to get a better look at it, to see if he was wrong. Maybe it _did_ have an injury or a weakness, and if he could find it then he could exploit it. 

Suddenly another pained noise echoed through the cave as the creature shifted onto its side, seemingly in a lot of discomfort. Troy resisted the urge to flinch at the sound, reminding himself that it was still asleep.

But just as he was about to conclude his research for the night and turn around back towards the town, something caught his eye. The big pile of limbs seemed to move again, but this time it was getting… smaller? The hunter furrowed his brows at the sight, completely frozen in place by confusion.

Continuously the beast shrank, and Troy stared in wonder. But as the writhing mass shifted and contorted into an almost _human_ looking figure, his expression morphed into shock. The transformation happening before the hunter's eyes was unlike _anything_ he had ever seen before, and he had seen a lot of strange things in his field of work.

For the first time in years he could only stand there dumbfounded, as not even fifty feet away from him the unimaginable took place.

In under a minute he had gone from staring at a giant sleeping beast, _fur and four legs and all,_ to staring at an _unconscious human_ in its place _._

Troy blinked rapidly, wondering if he had somehow slipped and hit his head while following it earlier. But after another minute of staring another pained grunt echoed his way, sounding unmistakably human, and he knew that this was real.

He hesitated, but after a moment he stepped forwards some more. He felt much less intimated now that there was simply another person in here with him, and not something that could tear him in half with one bite. They still seemed to be asleep, but Troy didn't let his guard down. Having being blessed with a muscular frame he knew how to handle himself in fight, almost always coming out on top, but with what he just saw who knew what other tricks this person had up their sleeve? He didn't feel like finding out if super strength was one of them.

About four feet away he stopped approaching, taking in the features of the naked, curled up white-haired boy before him.

"Well, fuck." He said aloud, running his hand through his tangled black hair. 

"You're not what I was expecting." 


	4. The Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> am i making this all up as I go?
> 
> maybe.

When Ray finally came to, his entire body felt sore all over. No, it felt like it _burned_. But this was nothing new to him. Every time he woke back up as a human, it always hurt. His limbs felt pushed to their limits, like his legs had just run a marathon after his arms just bench pressed a house. On days like this he liked to start out the morning by stretching, rubbing his sore muscles for a bit, then going for a float on the nearby lake. 

He groaned into his nest of blankets and leaves, bringing an arm up to rub his temples free of the throbbing pain. But.. his arm _couldn't move._ Immediately worried that he had paralyzed it last night somehow, he opened his eyes to take a closer look at the limb. 

But he couldn't, as it was tied behind him with a thick, coarse rope. Both of his arms, in fact. And his legs just below his knees as well. 

He instantly started to panic.

With a greater struggle than he wanted to admit, Ray hoisted himself into a sitting position, freezing in fear as his eyes landed on a figure propped against the cave wall about ten feet in front of him, near where he kept his belongings.

A very human, very scary figure.

"So you're _finally_ up." The stranger spoke, and Ray couldn't make out his tone. He sounded frustrated, yet relieved? It confused him, but he couldn't feel anything but fear.

_'They found me_ ' was all he could think, icy adrenaline coursing through his veins. ' _They found me, and they're_ _mad. They're going to kill me.'_

"I- I'm sorry!" Ray immediately began, trying to back away from the intruder. The bindings made this nearly impossible, though. As his heart rate picked up so did his breathing, and in a matter of seconds he was hyperventilating.

"I'm sorry, for whatever I did! I- I can't control it, I didn't mean for it to happen!" Ray continued, tears pushing at the corners of his eyes. "You can have the stuff back, I'm sorry-- Just please don't kill me.." 

He couldn't find it in himself to make eye contact anymore, his head and shoulders drooping forwards in defeat. No matter how genuinely sorry he felt he knew that there were still consequences for his actions, even if they weren't entirely _his_. And here he sat, completely powerless to stop whatever punishment awaited him.

Troy on the other hand, was confused. He had been right beside him while he was unconscious, and could have easily pulled his sword down through his heart right there, but something had stopped him. He couldn't tell if it was just his curiosity wanting to interrogate him later, or if it was pity, because he looked just like an exhausted, lost kid. He had come here with intent to trap and kill a beast, to fulfill his job and make a little extra coin, but he didn't sign up to hurt a kid begging for their life.

He expected the other to wake up angry, at the restraints and at his intrusion, or to maybe try and deny his involvement in the village rampagings. But whatever he was expecting, it wasn't for them to _immediately_ _apologize_. And it seemed sincere, too. Or at least his fear did, if the tears threatening to fall from the edge of his crystal blue eyes were any indication.

"Calm down," he sighed in frustration, "I don't plan on hurting you."

Ray severely doubted that considering the rope currently holding him captive, and the sword at the other's hip, but it still made him look back up once more.

"T-then what do you want?" He asked, voice wavering with uncertainty. 

Troy paused. He didn't quite know.

During his time while the boy was unconscious, he had put a lot of thought into the situation. He didn't want to just _kill_ him, but on the other hand he couldn't just let him walk free to terrorize some other poor village. Whatever he was, he seemed to have no control over it. And if he were to tell the townspeople that he had quelled the beast only for it to return once more, his reputation would shoot through the floor. Not to mention, he'd be putting them in potential danger. 

"I.. I don't know. But I can't just let you go." He finally replied, sounding lost in thought.

Ray paled, shaking his head. Being a prisoner was almost worse than dying. 

"No, please no," He begged, struggling in the bindings as if they would give way. "I- I'll leave, I'll go far away and you'll never see me again, just please _let me go._ " 

" _Look_ ," The hunter said with a short sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't like this situation any more than you do, trust me. And I'd love to let you go and be done with all of this, but what happens when you stumble upon another helpless town, hm?"

"I-…" Ray started, but the words died in his throat. It was true; even if he _did_ make it far away there was still no telling what his other form would try to do if it found anything else it liked along the way.

"Any other hunter would not have spared your life." Troy continued matter-of-factly, his gaze cold. 

A few seconds of heavy silence filled the room before Ray spoke up. His voice was quiet, almost like he was afraid to ask.

"...So why did _you_?"

Troy narrowed his gaze, his eyes seemingly taking in every inch of the boy's exposed skin. If Ray was bothered by the stares or had any semblance of modesty, he didn't show it.

"How old are you..?" The hunter asked after a brief moment.

Ray furrowed his brows, unsure of what his _age_ had to do with anything regarding the matter at hand, but answered nonetheless. 

"I'm eighteen…?" He said timidly, biting his lower lip. "I mean, I think? I- I don't really have a calendar.." 

"Jesus Christ," Troy sighed to himself again, closing his eyes and rubbing his face. He was older than he'd originally thought he was, but that wasn't necessarily a good thing. The only reason he thought him to be so young was by how skinny and frail the boy looked; he definitely didn't have the peak physique of someone nearing their twenties. Grimly, Troy wondered if malnutrition had any part to play in it. 

"You got a name?" He asked, dropping his hand back into his usual cross-armed position. While the hunter _was_ nine years older than him, he didn't want to just keep calling him 'boy' or 'kid' anymore. 

The white-haired boy nodded, some of the tension visibly leaving his body. "Ray," he answered before remembering that most people used their full names in introductions. "Raymond Hyden." He felt a little odd using his last name, as if he was still a part of the family that kicked him out years ago.

"Troy." The hunter curtly introduced himself in response, not bothering with his surname. His first was all that most people needed to know. 

Once their introductions had passed, another thick silence settled over the cave. With a grimace Ray shifted awkwardly in the blanket mound, trying to soothe his aching limbs. But he was unsuccessful, and couldn't take it anymore. 

"....Could you let me out of these?" He asked meekly. "I promise I won't run, or fight. It just _hurts._." The ropes themselves weren't necessarily hurting him, but the fact that he hadn't been able to relax his muscles yet was.

But Troy didn't believe him, always cautious not to be a victim of ulterior motives. He hadn't tied the rope tight enough to break through the skin or cut off his circulation- if anything, Ray even had a bit of wiggle room. So if he wanted out, he was likely planning something.

"They're not _that_ tight." The hunter argued, shaking his head lightly. He wouldn't fall for any tricks.

"No, they're not," Ray admitted, turning his head away from Troy's piercing gaze. "It- it just hurts to be stuck like this.." His voice grew quiet and he tensed up again, like he wasn't sure if he'd get in trouble for saying it. "My body's still sore from.. _changing_... last night…."

At that, Troy's eyes sharpened. 

"Changing from _what_ , exactly?" He asked, not caring if the question seemed rude. He had to get confirmation that what he'd seen was real, that the thing he'd caught glimpses of last night wasn't just the light playing tricks on him, or possible brain trauma. He'd seen plenty of beasts and plenty of humans, but never in his life seen someone who was _both_ , until now. It was borderline supernatural, and every part inside of Troy burned to know _more_.

"That's a long story..." Was Ray's only response, still not making eye contact.

Troy gestured to the two of them, and the empty cave surrounding them. "I've got time." He shrugged.

Suddenly something clicked in Ray's mind, something he dared to try. Both of them wanted something out of this situation, and maybe they could get it? Using his only leverage that he had Ray tried his luck, looking back at the hunter and squirming a bit as he spoke. 

"I'll tell you if you let me stretch?"

Troy sighed. They weren't going anywhere with this without knowing the details, so if he denied the request they'd just continue to be stuck in silence, neither of them knowing what to do.

He hated going against what his gut told him to do, which was to just leave the boy there helpless until he decided to speak, but he figured that Ray couldn't do much damage to him unarmed. Besides, everything he'd said so far had been truthful; the kid looked too afraid to lie.

  
"Alright," He grumbled begrudgingly, a slight warning to his tone as he stepped closer. " _But don't try anything._ "

"Deal." Ray nodded with a tiny smile, holding his ground as the hunter approached. He doubted that he _could_ try anything considering the size and combat training of the other, so he opted for simply cooperating. 


End file.
